Thoughts Wide Open
He knows what we are thinking
Thoughts Wide Open
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“And getting into a boat he crossed over and came to his own city. And behold, some people brought to him a paralytic, lying on a bed. And when Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, “Take heart, my son; your sins are forgiven.” And behold, some of the scribes said to themselves, “This man is blaspheming.” But Jesus, knowing their thoughts, said, “Why do you think evil in your hearts? For which is easier, to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Rise and walk’? But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”—he then said to the paralytic—“Rise, pick up your bed and go home.” And he rose and went home. When the crowds saw it, they were afraid, and they glorified God, who had given such authority to men.”
Matthew 9:1-8
In this passage we will see further that the authority is going to travel beyond the heights of teaching, healing, or power over the demonic. These have been extraordinary to watch and should convince the simplest man to see that Jesus is very different from the rest. But now we see for certain that this man, Jesus, is more than a man with superpower, he’s God. So here are a few points to think about today:
1. Jesus knows the secret of secrets.
If the son of God can heal and cast out demons let’s be sure that he has the right to hear our very thoughts. His authority is all encompassing. To have the wrong view of Christ is to set yourself up to the ignorance of his true power. To not see him as creator is to not realize if he created your mind, be sure he knows whats in it. This is frightening without the gospel. Everything laid bare.
We must remember that what we think is as open to Christ as what we do. I talked of this when reading the sermon on the mount. It’s the heart and the intentions and the thoughts that condemn a man, not just his actions. That’s why the gospel is so precious. Men think they are righteous before God because they don’t say a bad word, say a mean thing, or steal. But they don’t know the full extent of why they are guilty. They haven’t connected that the actions only stem from the wickedness inside. We need Christ. We can’t have forgiveness without his righteousness given to us.
What do we think of when we see the opposite sex?
What do we think of about our spouse?
What do we think about when alone?
This is serious. Read Romans 2:16 and hear the reality of our life. This isn’t to make you shrink back from Christ and try to not think bad thoughts so he likes you, but rather to send you to him with thanksgiving and pleads for mercy and transformation from his spirit. I say and warn us of these things to entice you to see us as wretched and then see Him as wonderful!
2. Usually the religious are the biggest critics
The lesson we can learn from the scribes reaction is one of grave importance. They see Christ work and they hear him speak and are angry. Let us beware of being fast to think evil when Christ begins to heal and forgive a man. A man comes to Christ and our first thought is “yeah, sure.’’ This attitude happens a lot toward men in prison and men stuck in a hard lifestyle. It’s as if we assume their faith is only one for getting free again. Or a way to just get out of their consequences. We must know that Christ works in the worst of men and we must not think that our critical thoughts toward these men goes unnoticed. We must not say in our hearts that they can never change or be forgiven by Christ or we may find ourselves rebuked by Christ himself.
3. Christ can forgive sin.
Let’s focus on the obvious because the obvious is often taken for granted. Christ can forgive you. This message is plain here. He came and bore our punishment for us and we know now that he knows everything about us as he does it. We are fully known. Do you know this? All your sin, all my sin, whether inward or outward is open to the son of God. All he says is to agree with him on it and turn from it and rest in his work as your replacement. Then you will be forgiven, made into a new creation, receive his spirit, and have eternal life. Do you see this? Let’s not critique the son of God but let’s embrace him.